Maegan Spindler and Robert Klumb were killed July 8 when the driver of a minivan blew a stop sign and struck them and two cars in the parking lot of the Dakota Inn in Pickstown.

Written by

Megan Card and J.L. Atyeo

Maegan SpindlerAge: 25 From: Cazenovia, N.Y. About: A New York native, she earned a bachelor’s degree in wildlife science from the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry in 2010 before earning a one-year degree from the fisheries program at Vancouver Island University in 2011. She spent two years with Wyoming Game and Fish as a fisheries technician. As a seasonal worker, she was studying the pallid sturgeon just south of the Fort Randall Dam with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Robert KlumbAge: 46 From: Pierre About: The lead research biologist for the Great Plains Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office, Klumb was working to help the endangered pallid sturgeon while also studying Asian carp. He was an adjunct associate professor at South Dakota State University. He earned his bachelor’s of science degree at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1990 in biology and biological aspects of conservation, a related master’s degree at UW-Stevens Point in 1997 and a doctorate in philosophy at Cornell University in 2002 with an emphasis in natural resources-fisheries. Sources: Gregg Spindler and U.S. Fish and Wildlife

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A drunken driver was behind the wheel in a Pickstown car crash earlier this month that killed two researchers with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, authorities allege.

Robert Klumb, 46, and Maegan Spindler, 25, had just returned from dinner with colleagues after a 12-hour day performing field work along the Missouri River, said Scott Larson, field supervisor in the Pierre Fish and Wildlife office.

Around 8:45 p.m. on a Monday, July 8, the co-workers were killed when the driver of a minivan blew a stop sign and struck them and two cars in the parking lot of the Dakota Inn, 200 feet from the intersection.

“In a boat, researching in the field, we prepare for life-threatening complications,” said Dane Shuman, a fish and wildlife biologist who found his friends’s bodies. “But you don’t expect something like this in a motel parking lot.”

A 28-year-old Lake Andes man, Ronald Ray Fischer Jr., was driving the minivan and suffered serious but not life-threatening injuries, according to the South Dakota Highway Patrol.

A patrol lieutenant told the Mitchell Daily Republic after the crash that Fischer’s driving was so poor that they were investigating the possibility of a medical emergency. But new criminal charges indicate otherwise.

Charles Mix County State’s Attorney Tom Deadrick said Fischer faces two felony counts of vehicular homicide, which is the state’s charge for an unintential but negligent homicide in which the driver was under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Each charge is punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

The patrol said late Monday that Fischer’s blood alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit for driving.

A warrant for Fischer’s arrest was issued Friday, Sheriff Randy Thaler said. But apprehending the 28-year-old, who checked out of Avera McKennan Hospital in Sioux Falls more than a week ago, might take some time because he lives on the Yankton Indian Reservation, outside the sheriff office’s jurisdiction.

“We hope to catch him as soon as we can, but that all depends on when we can get him off tribal land,” Thaler said.

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A man of foresight

Klumb, who lived in Pierre and worked for Fish and Wildlife for more than a decade, was the lead research biologist for the Great Plains Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office.

Shuman worked with Klumb on native fish research for almost as long and called the man “very modest, yet highly intelligent.”

For the six-person team near Pickstown, Klumb was the project leader and always was looking for the next question that needed to be answered, Shuman said.

“Our research always has a primary focus, a primary question — but Rob always held concern for the future,” Shuman said. “He was a man with good foresight.”

His death is a major loss, Shuman said.

“His legacy will live on, but his intellect and camaraderie and participation will be lost,” he said.

Klumb’s family members could not be reached for comment. He is survived by both parents, three siblings and nieces and nephews, according to a short obituary. His funeral and visitation will be held Monday in Phelps, Wis.

Finding her place

Maegan Spindler had a July 13 ticket to fly home to Cazenovia, N.Y. Instead, her family and friends held a memorial service for her that weekend in their packed country church.

She had been working with Fish and Wildlife as a seasonal employee based out of Pierre. She started in March and was scheduled to be there until October, studying the habits of the endangered pallid sturgeon on the Missouri River just south of the Fort Randall Dam.

“It hit the target for her,” said her father, Gregg Spindler. “She was very excited about the scientific aspects.”

He always had wanted his child to pursue a graduate degree, and it wasn’t until her co-workers in Pierre pushed her to continue her education that she started to put some serious thought into it.

“They were professionally mentoring her,” Gregg Spindler said. “It was just a wonderful experience for her.”

He said that despite her small size, his daughter loved doing the physical labor, hauling in heavy gill nets and gently removing the fish. He said she also was excited by the lab work and trying to understand fish behavior.

“(Maegan) was learning so much. She was just a young woman who wanted to be a scientist and finding her place,” he said. “In my opinion, she found it in Pierre working with those scientists.”